IT FEELS LIKE AFCON 2004 ALL OVER AGAIN

Robson Sharuko

H-Metro Editor

ZIMBABWE versus Egypt at the AFCON finals − it has quite a familiar ringing tone to it.

The two sides will battle again in Morocco on December 22, on the second day of the 2025 AFCON finals, in a Group B showdown.

The group also features South Africa and Angola.

The Warriors have never played Bafana Bafana or the Palancas Negras at the AFCON finals.

But, with a record number of COSAFA nations qualifying for the tournament in Morocco, it was inevitable that they were likely to face two teams from this part of the world.

We have played Bafana Bafana a number of times, including in the current 2026 World Cup qualifiers, with the South Africans beating us 3-1 in Bloemfontein last year.

We are set to play them in the reverse fixture and, hopefully, it will be in Harare.

However, we have never played Bafana Bafana at the AFCON finals and our meeting in Marrakesh on December 29 will be the first duel between the two neighbours.

The Warriors have never played Angola at the AFCON finals and our meeting in Marrakesh on Boxing Day will be our first duel against the Palancas Negras.

But, the Pharaohs of Egypt are familiar opposition for us at the AFCON finals.

Our duel against them, at this stage of the competition, goes back to our very first match at the Nations Cup finals in Tunisia in 2004.

On January 25, 2004, the first generation of Warriors to play at the AFCON finals went into battle against the Pharaohs at the Taieb Mhiri Stadium in Sfax before 22 000 fans.

Peter Ndlovu thrust the Warriors into the lead, just after the interval, but the Pharaohs fought back through goals by Abdel Hamid in the 58th minute and Mohamed Barakat in the 63rd minute to win the game 2-1.

The match will forever be remembered by the Warriors fans for Wilfred Mugeyi’s miss, from close range, in the dying moments, which would have earned the team a point.

Had we converted that chance, the Warriors would have qualified for the quarter-finals, at the very first time of asking, as four points would have earned them second place.

Algeria, with four points, would have lost second place because of their head-to-head record with Zimbabwe after the Warriors 2-1 win over the Desert Foxes.

Our next meeting with the Pharaohs at the AFCON finals came in the opening game of the 2019 AFCON finals in Cairo with the Egyptians winning a tight game 1-0.

Mohamed Salah played in that match but it was Mahmoud Trezeguet who decided the encounter with his 41st minute goal before 73 299 fans at the Cairo International Stadium.

The Pharaohs were knocked out in the second round by Bafana Bafana who beat them 1-0.

Fixtures

Dec 22 − Egypt v Zim (Agadir)

Dec 26 − Angola v Zim (Marrakesh)

Dec 29 − SA v Zim (Marrakesh)